Getting to know

All people experience unpleasant symptoms when stung or bitten by insects, due to substances in the insect venom or saliva. In most people these symptoms are self-limiting and usually not life threatening. However, in people with an inherited predisposition to develop allergy, substances released by the insect at the site of the bite can trigger an allergic response. In a small number of cases, this response is very dramatic and can be life threatening because of the involvement of vital organs.